Don't Annex Williams Acreage

November 05, 1989|The Morning Call

To the Editor:

As children, we marvel at the "magic" of sleight-of-hand. As adults, we are entertained by its deception.

On Nov. 7, voters in Williams Township will decide whether to annex 387 acres in the northeastern part of the township to the city of Easton. City officials have supported annexation as a means to promote the $16 million sale of city-owned property to Two Rivers Communities Inc. Two Rivers proposes to build 3,200 townhouses and condominiums at densities in excess of 10 units per acre.

Officials of Easton and Two Rivers would have us believe that annexation is in the best interests of Williams Township. In its recent mailing to each Williams voter, Two Rivers "suggests" that without annexation the new residents would constitute a majority and take over the township. It is worth noting that among the most ardent opponents of annexation are newcomers to Williams Township like myself.

Two Rivers also has used the specter of cost of increased services to "encourage" annexation. Without annexation, and with the 3,200 units that Two Rivers proposes, the population of Williams Township would rise to about 10,000. Palmer Township has 15,000 residents and a volunteer fire department. Lower Macungie Township has a population of 16,000 and is served by state police only. Thus, there is little basis for supporting annexation as a means to avoid future tax increases.

In response to the city's annexation offer of annual payments to Williams totaling $15 million over 50 years, our committee has determined that without annexation, total revenues to Williams for the same 50 years, based on the most recent data provided by Two Rivers, would total $228,746,785. In its recent mailing, Two Rivers totally ignored revenues from local wage tax and real estate transfer taxes from future resales of the 3,200 units, which Williams would lose with annexation.

To further dramatize the financial analysis, Two Rivers has projected that a $121 million "nest egg" could be accumulated if payments from Easton were allowed to accumulate at 8 percent interest, with property taxes eliminated. Using the exact same "nest egg" analysis, without annexation, yields a balance of $1,173,909,463 (this is not a misprint - $1.174 billion is correct!) at the end annexation does not offer a financial advantage to Williams Township.

Little has been said about the financial impact of annexation on the 18 private property owners whose municipal tax rate would go from 4 mills to 50.2 mills. The owner of a $120,000 home currently paying $40 per year to Williams would pay $502 annually to Easton, if annexation is successful.